Corn-husker.



No. 808,465 PATENTED DEC. 26, 1905.

- G. MEADER.

com: HUSKER.

APPLICATION FILED OOT.17,1904.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

No. 808,465. HPATENTED DEG. 26,1905. G. MEADER.

001m HUSKER.

APPLICATION FILED O0T.17,1904.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

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W TED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 26, 1905.

Application filed October 17, 1904. Serial No. 228,837.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, GEORGE MEADER, a citizen of the United States,residing at Fowler, in the county of Benton and State of Indiana, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Corn-Huskers; and I dodeclare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of theinvention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which itappertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to corn-huskers, and one of the objects of thesame is to simplify the mechanism in machines of this character and toeconomize in weight and cost of manufacture.

' Another object is to improve the construction of the gathering,snapping, and cleaning rollers in machines of this character.

Still another object is to provide means whereby the elevator may beswung to the side of the machine or to the rear end thereof and thedischarge end raised or lowered to the required height to discharge intowagon-boxes of varying heights.

These and other objects are attained by means of the constructionillustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a sideview of a corn-husker embodying my improvements, the draft-tongue beingbroken away and the adjusting-lever being removed to better show theconstruction. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the same, the guideboards at therear end of the frame being removed to better illustrate certaindetails. Fig. 3 is a rear end elevation of the machine and showing theelevator and means for adjusting it. Fig. 4 is a detail elevation of alever and rack for adjusting the inclination ofthe frame of the machinerelatively to the draft-tongue. Fig. 5 is a detail plan of one of thegatheringrollers and the universaljoint connection thereof. Fig. 6 is aplan view of the snapping and cleaning rollers detached from themachine.

Referring to the drawings by numeral for a more particular descriptionof my invention, the numeral 1 denotes a suitable frame of generalrectangular shape and of box-like construction mounted upon wheels 2 and3, the wheel 2 serving as a drive-wheel for the rollers and the endlesscarrier of the elevator. nected to one corner of the front portion ofthe frame 1 is a draft-tongue 4, pivoted to a bracket 5 and providedwith a brace 6, piv- Gonoted at 7, and a brace 8, one end of which ispivoted at 9 to the draft-tongue and its opposite end connectedpivotally at 10 to an ad justing-lever 11. The lever 11 is pivoted at 12to the side of the frame of the machine and is provided with asector-rack 13 and a springprojected locking-rod 14 to engage thenotches 15 in the sector-rack 13, as is clearly shown in Fig. 4.

The gathering-rollers 16 each consist of a i central shaft 17 and aspirally-arranged screw 18, the front end of the shaft 17 beingjournaled in a bracket which extends outward and downward from the shaftand is connected at its rear end to the frame portion of the machine.

Upon reference to Fig. 2 of the drawings it will be seen that thegathering-screws diverge at their outer ends. the inner ends of theshafts 17 being connected by universal joints 19 or suitable flexibleconnections to shafts 20, j on rnaled in brackets 21, secured to plates22, spaced apart to forma passage for the stalks.

The shafts 20 at their upper ends are connected to the combined snappingand cleaning rollers 23 24, with which they revolve. The rollers 23 24are provided with conical front ends 25, at the rear of which therollers are provided with right and left hand spirallyarranged ribs 26.It will be noted that the ribs 26 at the front end of the rollers 23 24are intermediately disposed one to the other, while at the rear portionsaid ribs are substantially parallel or oppositely arranged, as shown.At the termination of the rib portion of the rollers 23 24 said rollersare slightly enlarged in order that the rib portions of said rollers mayset at the required distance apart to perform their function, while theenlarged rear ends of said rollers which form the cleaning or strippingrollers may be substantially in contact. The cleaning portions of therollers 23 24 are grooved spirally toward the rear, the grooves 27 28being oppositely arranged in order that they may register whenoppositely rotated. Wound within the groove 27 of roller 23 is a ropeor-cable 29, which fills the groove and extends beyond the periphery ofthe roller to engage the groove 28 in roller 24. Instead of arope orcable, as 29, I may use rawhide, barbed wire, or other materials,depending upon the character of work to be done and the condition of thefield. At their rear ends the rollers 23 24 are provided withgear-wheels 30, and the rear ends of the shafts 20 are journaled inbrackets or standards 31, secured at their lower ends to the frame 1 ofthe machine. A guard-plate oserves to prevent the corn from being caughtbetween the gear-wheels 30. The shaft 20 of roller 24 carries at itsrear end a beveled gearwheel 32, which meshes with a similar gear 33,fixed to ashaft 34, provided with asprocketwheel 35, connected by achain 36 to a sprocketwheel 37 on the axle of the drive-wheel 2.

An endless belt 38, carrying fingers or flights 39, serves to carry thestalks upward from the rear ends of the gatherers between the rollers 2324; The belt or chain 38 at its front end passes around an idler orsprocket 40 and at its rear end is carried by a sprocket-wheel 41,mounted upon a vertical shaft 42, having a bevel-gear 43 securedthereto, as shown in Fig. 3, said gear 43 being in mesh with a gear 44,mounted on the end of a stub-shaft 45, journaled in brackets on theframe and provided with a gear-wheel 46, which meshes with gear 30 onthe rear end of roller 24.

The elevator comprises a chute 47 in which is mounted an endless belt orchain 48, carrying fingers or flights 49, said belt or chain passingover an idle sprocket 50 at one end and at the opposite end over thesprocketwheel 51, connected to a shaft 52, provided with a universaljoint 53, connected to the lower end of shaft 42, said shaft beingjournaled in a bracket 54, secured to a cross-bar on the frame of themachine. The chute 47 is pivoted at 56 to swing laterally froma positionat the side of the frame, as shown in Fig. 3, to a position extendingoutward at the rear of the machine, and the discharge end 57 of thechute may be raised or lowered to accommodate receivers or boxes ofvarying heights by means of a rod or bar 58, secured to the under sideof the chute 47 and extending into a tubular keeper 59, provided with abind ing-screw to hold the rod 58 in adjusted position. The keeper 59 isformed on or secured to a bar 61, mounted to swing upon the pivotalpoint 56.

Guide-boards 62 are supported upon suitable brackets 63 above the rearends of the rollers 23 24, and the fingers 39 on the chain 38 assist incarrying the corn over the gearwheels 30 to discharge it upon theinclined board 63 and into the chute 47, whereby it is conveyed to thedischarge end by means of the fingers or flights 49.

The operation of my machine may be described as follows: The machine isdrawn by horses attached to the pole or tongue 4, a row of corn passingbetween the gatherers 16, which run near the ground to pick up the downcorn and convey the stalks between the plates 22 to a position to becarried backward between fingers 39 on the chain 38 to thesnapping-rollers 23 24 and backward between the cleaning-sections of therollers 23 24, the

stalks and husks being carried downward to the ground and the cleanedears passing backward to the rear end of the rollers 23 24, where theyare discharged into the chute 47 and conveyed between the fingers 49 tothe discharge 57 of said chute and dropped into a wagon attached by itstongue to the machine in position immediately over the discharge portionof the chute. If the elevator is arranged, as shown in Fig. 3, todischarge at the side of the machine, I may provide a box or receiverinto which the corn may be discharged, and this box or receiver may bedischarged into a wagon when filled. To tilt the frame upward at therear, the lever 11 is operated and locked to the sector 13 in adjustedposition.

From the foregoing it will be observed that the machine is comparativelysimple in construction and is light and easy of draft, that the combinedsnapping and cleaning rollers are reliable and efficient for thepurpose, and that the discharge-elevator may be adjusted to suit varyingconditions of service.

Various changes in the shape, proportions, and minor details ofconstruction may be resorted to without departing from the principle orsacrificing any of the advantages of this in- Vention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a corn-husker, oppositely-disposed spiral gatherers in combinationwith combined snapping and cleaning rollers provided withspirally-disposed ribs on their forward portions, spirally disposed andoppositely arranged grooves upon the rear portions of said rollers, thegrooves in one of said rollers being wound with material to extend intothe groove in the other roller, substantially as described.

2. A combined snapping and cleaning roller comprising a spirally-ribbedfront section and a spirally-grooved rear section, the grooves in saidrear section being wound with a material adapted to project beyond theperiphery of the roller, substantially as described.

3. In a corn-husker, a pair of snapping and cleaning rollers comprisingspirally-ribbed front sections, said ribs being intermediately disposedupon the rollers at their front portions and arranged to register attheir rear portions, spirally-disposed grooves in the rear portions ofsaid rollers, the grooves in one of said rollers being wound or filledwith a material adapted to strip the corn-husks from corn, said materialextending into the grooves of the other roller, substantially asdescribed.

4. In a corn-husker, gatherer-screws having oppositespirally-arranged"body portions mounted upon shafts journaled at theirfront ends in diverging brackets, universal joints connecting the rearends of said shafts with the shafts upon the front of the snapping andcleaning rollers in combination with the snapping and cleaning rollerscomprising spirallyribbed front sections, spirallygrooved rear sections,the grooves in one of said rollers being filled by a rope or cable WoundWithin the grooves and extending beyond the periphery of the roller toengage the groove in the other roller, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of twosubscribing Witnesses.

GEORGE MEADER. Witnesses:

DAVID E. MAVIT, LEMUEL B. STEVENSON.

